fedstats.gov. You can find all kinds of government data there. 2% unemployment? That's an absolute lie. That's impossible. And Bush's 5.4% uneployment rate today is lower than Clinton's 5.6% rate when HE was seeking re-election.
Posted on 10/20/2004 10:22:22 AM PDT by AnAmericanMother
I have a favor to ask, hope somebody can help.
Our riding instructor is a Democrat (ouch) but we're working on it.
She posted a chart on her office door that is obviously an Email from the DNC or some other Dem source. It purports to be a side by side comparison of economic conditions under Clinton and under Bush. It compares such things as unemployment rates, national debt, etc. It purports to cite Bureau of Labor statistics. It is uniformly good for Clinton and bad for Bush.
I KNOW the figures are wrong because the unemployment rate is shown as TWO PERCENT during Clinton's term and that can't be right. Other numbers seem to be grossly out of whack. I don't have a cell phone camera or any way to photocopy the chart.
Does this sound familiar to anybody? I intend to make a stealth post on the other side of her office door rebutting this material, if I can source it.
Thanks for your help. A lot of people come through this barn, and I don't want the obvious errors here to go unrebutted.
Send these url's to your e-mail lists and media contacts.
Media contacts in all 50 States
http://congress.org/congressorg/dbq/media/
Copy and paste this in your E-mail.
This is the FREE video clip of Kerry and VVAW.
It's THE most powerful 3:52 of video that I have ever seen.
And Kerry and the DNC cannot stop EVERYONE on the internet from seeing this!
E-mail this url
Windows Media Player Broadband
http://www.videopa.com/kerry/excerpt3.asx
Windows Media Player Dial Up
http://www.videopa.com/kerry/excerpt3_low.asx
RealPlayer
http://www.videopa.com/kerry/excerpt3.ram
Click Here for
The Final 2 Swift Boat Vets Ads!
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http://www2.swiftvets.com/index.php?topic=Ads
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https://www.swiftvets.com/swift/petition.php
Click Here for
List of Sinclair Stations Nationwide
http://sbgweb2.sbgnet.com/business/television.shtml
Click Here for
the FREE Stolen Honor documentary clips that Kerry
and the Democrats do not want YOU to see.
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Theater's showing Celsius 41.11
The Documentary that Challenges the Lies in
"Fahrenheit 9/11" and Deconstructs John Kerry
http://www.celsius4111.com/4111/c4111_contents/where/map.shtml
John F. Kerry
Timeline of a traitor.
Click Here
http://www.archive-news.net/Kerry/JK_timeline.html
Free online version of
John Kerry and the VVAW
"The New Soldier"
You can read it online right now.
http://ejsmithweb.com/fr/newsoldier/
CLICK HERE for Video
NY Times and the Old Media
Wrong about WW II, Wrong about Iraq
In fact Wrong about every USA War!
http://www.moveamericaforward.org/Video/MAF-1-HI.wmv
Hit the instructor with a joke:
Q: what's the difference between the DNC talking points and a bag of horse manure?
A: The bag!
If that doesn't work, whip some sense into the instructor with the horse whip! (just kidding)
fedstats.gov. You can find all kinds of government data there. 2% unemployment? That's an absolute lie. That's impossible. And Bush's 5.4% uneployment rate today is lower than Clinton's 5.6% rate when HE was seeking re-election.
2% unemployment... That would have been amazing, but it did not happen. I recall the avg during Clinton's admin was 5.5%. Last report I heard was that unemployment remains at 5.4% currently.
Try Bureau of Labor Stats:
http://www.bls.gov/
I don't know where to find it, but earlier this year certain sectors in the economy were growing at 20 year records levels. Maybe someone else here remembers more specifics.
What other sort of things did the poster say?
By the way, why do women have to yell so much at the stables? They yell whether they need to or not. The men don't. I always bring my ear plugs.
Tell her that since so many people are in desperate needat this time according to the Democrats, it would be immoral for the Democrats to hide their secret to success so please tell us what was it they did to create such an economic boom? She will stutter and stammer around and ultimately point to paying down the national debt. This is when you hit her with:
A. This didn't happen until after the Republicans took over the Congress in 1994 with debt reduction their issue.
B. It was easy to do so since Clinton cut the size of the military and intelligence agencies using much of that money to decrease the debt.
C. Clinton included Social Security as taxable income.
I don't know if this helps. The only fair way to compare Bush43 with Clinton, is to look at the first four years of the Clinton Presidency with Bush43`s Presidency. Under those standards, Bush43 wins hands down. And remember, in 1995 the GOP took over control of Congress after 40 years of Democrats running the federal government. It it wasn't for the GOP Congress advancing Newt Gingrich`s "Contract With America", welfare reform, the $500 child tax credit, cutting capital gains, regulatory relief and the anti-crime package wouldn't have been passed into law. The GOP accomplished many good things and Clinton basically went along for the ride.
I'm sure others will provide point-by-point rebuttals to the economic statistics. But I would suggest you answer your instructor as follows:
Clinton enjoyed good economic times and statistics, but please consider what he left President Bush:
1. The stock market bubble had burst (starting in March 2000) and was in full melt-down mode when Bush entered the presidency.
2. The economy was sinking rapidly at the end of Clinton's Administration and was going into recession around March 2001.
3. Corporate scandals (Enron, Worldcom, Tyco, Global Crossing, etc.) exploded shortly after Clinton left office -- they all had their roots and origins in the Clinton years. These scandals not only wiped out thousands of jobs, they also undermined investor and consumer confidence. The reforms that followed are probably a deterrent to and constraint upon job formation.
4. The terrorist attacks on 9-11-01 cost this country probably $1 trillion in lost productivity, loss in stock market equity, and required investments in anti-terrorism.
5. Clinton had done nothing and invested nothing in preparing this country to confront the gathering terrorist threat that was evident (and we have learned flourishing) during the Clinton years.
6. Finally, Bill Clinton left Bush with the ticking time bombs of a bankrupt Social Security system, Medicare/Medicaid, and other transfer systems that Clinton just kicked down the road for the next guy.
All of the above should be viewed as the "Bridge to the 21st Century" that Clinton promised... Some "bridge."
"economic conditions" aren't going to amount to a hill of beans if he/she is dying from because a dirty bomb going off somewhere because a terrorist daiperhead thinks a Kerry election means we will back out of the middle east democracy efforts.
This election transcends politics and policy, it's a life or death decision
Clinton was impeached and fined $85K for committing purjury before a grand jury, lost a civil lawsuit to Paula Jones and had to pay her $300K in compensation, lost his law license for 5 years, engaged in unethical behavior on public property, reduced defense and intelligence spending to the lowest levels since 1940, made questionable deals with foreign countries, appeased North Korea, allowed OBL to escape capture several times. Clinton also worked to contain international terrorism, not eliminate it.
TWO PERCENT during Clinton's term ???
4% is considered "full employment"
Bookmarking
John Kerry is traveling the nation on his misery tour, inundating voters with his pessimism about America's economy. What voters may not realize, however, is that the growing economy that Kerry continues to talk down is remarkably similar to the economy Bill Clinton touted during his 1996 reelection campaign and that Kerry speaks of in glowing terms. Unemployment was 5.6 percent in May 1996, the exact same level as it is now. The average monthly payroll growth from January to May 1996 was 233,000 jobs, and from January to May 2004 the economy created an average of 238,000 jobs each month. Many key economic indicators are stronger today than in 1996, including GDP growth and homeownership.
President Bush's leadership has helped America overcome great challenges, including 9/11, war and recession. As a result of the President's pro-growth policies, America's economy today is strong and getting stronger-even stronger than Bill Clinton's 1996 economy.
|
Economic Indicator |
1996 |
2004 |
|
Job Growth |
|
|
|
Average monthly payroll growth (Jan-May) |
233,000 |
238,000 |
|
Number of manufacturing jobs created (Jan-May) |
15,000 |
91,000 |
|
Average number of individuals working part time due to economic reasons (First term) |
5 million |
4.3 million |
|
Number of individuals working part time because they could only find part time work May |
1.725 million |
1.467 million |
|
Jan-May average |
1.6 million |
1.4 million |
|
First term average |
2 million |
1.2 million |
|
Percent of new jobs paying Above the median average (Jan-June) |
60% |
60% |
|
Below the median average (Jan-June) |
40% |
40% |
|
Unemployment |
|
|
|
Unemployment May |
5.6% |
5.6% |
|
Jan-May average |
5.6% |
5.6% |
|
Unemployment rate for African Americans |
10.2% |
9.9% |
|
Unemployment rate for Hispanics |
9.6% |
7.0% |
|
Broadest measure of unemployment (U6, seasonally adjusted) May |
9.7% |
9.7% |
|
Jan-May average |
9.8% |
9.7% |
|
Of those unemployed, percent unemployed less than 5 weeks First term average |
36% |
36% |
|
Jan-May average |
36% |
32% |
|
Of those unemployed, percent unemployed 5-14 weeks First term average |
31% |
31% |
|
Jan-May average |
31% |
29% |
|
Of those unemployed, percent unemployed 15-26 weeks First term average |
15% |
16% |
|
Jan-May average |
15% |
16% |
|
Economy |
|
|
|
Debt as a percentage of GDP |
48.5% |
38.6% |
|
Average monthly inflation (First term) |
2.8% |
2.2% |
|
Average GDP over most recent three quarters |
3.1% |
5.6% |
|
Increase in real per capita after taxes |
$980 |
$1,900 |
|
Stock Ownership Percent of all Americans |
41% (1995) |
49.5% (2002) |
|
Households |
40.6 million |
52.7 million |
|
Individuals |
69.3 million |
84.3 million |
|
Consumer Sentiment (June) Sentiment |
92.4 |
95.2 |
|
Consumer Conditions |
105.4 |
108.1 |
|
Expectations |
84.0 |
86.9 |
|
Rate of bankruptcy filings.
|
17.9% |
2.8% |
|
Consumer credit as a share of household debt First term average |
21.4% |
22.8% |
|
First quarter |
23.4% |
21.2% |
|
Percent of high school graduates who enroll in college |
62% |
64% |
|
Percent of population who achieved bachelors degree |
15.8% |
17.7% (2002) |
|
Homeownership |
|
|
|
Homeownership rate (first quarter) |
65.1% |
68.6% |
|
Housing Affordability Index (first quarter) |
131.5 |
144.1 |
|
Quality of Life |
|
|
|
Food Stamps program |
|
|
|
Number of participating households (March) |
10.7 million |
10.3 million |
|
Number of participating individuals (March) |
25.9 million |
23.8 million |
|
Number of Americans without health insurance Number of uninsured |
41.7 million uninsured (1996) |
43.6 million uninsured, (2002) |
|
Percent of population |
15.6% |
15.2% |
|
Average annual household expenditure for food away from home (constant 2002 dollars) |
$2,240 per household or $877 per person (1998) |
$2,276 per household or $910 per person (2002) |
|
Number of cruise passengers (50% of whom earn between $20,000 and $59,000) |
4.7 million |
8.2 million |
|
Percent of new one family homes with more than 2,000 square feet of floor-area. |
48% |
57% (2003) |
|
Charitable giving |
$ 150.7 billion |
$241 billion (70% of households) |
Job growth is as robust as it was in the mid-1990s. Average monthly payroll job growth for the last five months is stronger than during the same period in 1996. And contrary to Kerry's claim, the gross job growth is occurring in high-paying industries including manufacturing. On average, more Americans were in part-time jobs during President Clinton's first term than President Bush's first term. Kerry says that today's job growth is occurring only in part-time work and food service jobs, yet ignores Clinton's eight year record:
The unemployment rate is lower than the average of the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. The unemployment rates match President Clinton's during the exact same time periods.
Production has soared during President Bush's stewardship. Real GDP increased at an average 5.6% over the last three quarter, more than two percentage points faster than the comparable period of the Clinton Administration. Propelled by low inflation and middle class tax relief real after tax workers' pay has increased at more than twice the rate experienced at this point in the Clinton Administration, $1,900 under President Bush versus just $980 under President Clinton. Despite the stock-bubble bursting and mutual fund scandals, more American households own stock and mutual funds than in 1996. Where Kerry sees misery, consumers see progress and opportunity. Consumer sentiment is as high as it was in the mid-1990s and consumer expectations are strong as well.
Homeownership is at record levels and for the first time in our nation's history, more than half of all minorities own their own home. The National Realtors Association's Housing Affordability Index reveals that during the first quarter of 2004, the nation's typical household had 144.1% of the income needed to purchase a home at the median existing-home price, which was $170,800. In the first quarter, a median-income household ($54,517) could afford a home costing $246,100, which is well above the national median price of $170,800. In contrast, a median-income household could only afford a home with a median price of $145,000 in 1996.
Middle-income families are not only able to afford a home, but they're buying much larger homes. More than 57% of new home construction in 2003 were housing units larger than 2,000 square feet of floor area - up from only 48% in 1996. And today, despite Kerry's claims that middle-income families are more squeezed, families are spending more dining out, giving more to charity, and even going on more cruises - a vacation option once thought only available to the wealthy.
President Bush has said that he will not rest until every American who wants a job can find one. He understands the difficulty of workers transitioning from old economy jobs to Innovation economy jobs which is why he has increased job training funding by 12% to $23 billion and raised support for Trade Adjustment Assistance by 150%. President Bush is determined, even with today's record homeownership levels, to close the gap between minority and non-minority homeownership. He has proposed the No Down Payment Mortgage and enacted the American Dream Downpayment Act to help thousands of families own their own home. The President's policies are working to strengthen our growing economy, train workers for high-paying jobs, and help Americans achieve their dreams.
Sources:
Jobs and Unemployment: BLS
Economy: Richard Rahn, "Tallying Presidential Economic Success," Washington Times, 6/18/2004; Equity Ownership in America, SIA and Investment Company Institute, 2002; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, 5/21/2004; U.S. Census Bureau, "Statistical Abstract of the United States," 1996 and 2003; BLS
Homeownership: Census/HUD; National Realtors Association
Quality of Life: US. Census Bureau Current Population Survey; Food and Drug Administration; National Restaurant Association; Cruise Line International Association; "The 'personalities' of cruise ships," MSNBC, 12/12/2003; Giving USA 1996, 2003
Source: Here
Point out to them that:
1. The economy and the market started to turn down, starting March 2000, while Clinton was in office and Bush inherited the shrinking economy from Clinton.
2. Remind them of 9-11 and its impact on our economy.
3. Remind them of how Bush's tax cuts got us out of the recession and economy is growing again, and current unemployment is the same as under Clinton in 1996.
4. What do they think is going to happen to the economy, if Kerry won't fight the War on Terror and we get attacked.
5. Have them read this article:
Stern warning on Kerry from prophet of profit (Predicts economic disaster if Kerry elected)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1159520/posts
Anyone who thinks Clinton had anything to do with the great economy in the 90s just doesn't get it. The great economy was due to a couple of trends that came together like a perfect storm:
1) Y2k required every decent sized company to completely changed their entire technical infrastructures. Almost all software written and used by every company in the world had to be checked and fixed for the "millenium bug." Most invested heavily in new software and hardware and transitioned from 70s mainframes and 80s minis to client/server based ERP systems. Trillions were spent in a short time. That is why companies like SAP, peopleSoft, Oracle, SUN, etc., became such high flyers so quickly and also explains why shortly after Y2K, the economy began to crash and the NASDAQ was more than cut in half in just a few months.
2) The rise of the Internet caused trillions to be invested in new software and systems to take advantage of the new technology. All the telecom companies went nuts building capacity for all the new data. Equipment manufacturers like CISCO and Lucent couldn't keep up with the demand for all the new equipment to carry all that data. Full of Bull? Just ask DNC Chairman Terry McAullife how much he made off Global Crossing!
Hosting companies like Exodus sprung up from nowhere to become very large companies. Companies like eBay and Amazon sprung up to create whole new markets where non existed before.
3) The rise of the PC - Companies and homes alike spent trillions to buy PCs and software to take advantage of the new technology. Just look at when companies like Microsoft and Dell came into their own.
4) Republican control of the House (remember Newt) kept the brakes on spending and authored balanced budgets while the country reaped huge win-falls from the peace dividend resulting from the fall of the USSR (That you Ronald Reagan)
5) As the market began to rise trillions more flowed into the stock market from a whole new class of Americans known as the Investor class - this helped companies like Fidelity and Vanguard and alike to become enormous financial powerhouses.
I can go on and on and on.... never confuse the cow with the milkmaid.
nice job - thanks for the info
Unfortunately the fact of the matter is that to many people, statistics only matter if they support your opinion. Statistics that are false apply equally. I personally feel that the truth, for better or worse, is just that: the undisputable truth. Many people do not feel this way. Even confronted with facts and figures, they will cling to their opinions. Many times more tightly than before since it is now challenged.
I would recommend this: simply compile your own list and post it. I recommend the above posts as well as education reform statistics from the US department of education:
http://www.ed.gov/nclb/landing.jhtml
They have stats on the No Child Left Behind Act. Also you may try bringing up Kerry's senate record. Give a list of what he has voted for, against and what votes he hasn't even been there to cast. Incidentally, he's missed hundreds of votes just campaigning. Bush has not yet left a bill unsigned. You can find a broad list of votes at the senate website, but you can look around for a more condensed version. Bush's website has a few short lists. Try this as well:
http://data.bls.gov/servlet/SurveyOutputServlet?request_action=wh&graph_name=LN_cpsbref3
It may not be what you're looking for, but it's a chart of overall unemployment rate for the US. Marked on it is the period of time after 9/11. During this time, consumer confidence dwindled, foreign investment plumetted and our stocks dropped, if you will remember. The unemployment rate is now a full percent better than after this recession. Please note that at no time, even in Clinton's administration, was it EVER 2%. 3.9% is the record low in the last 10 years which happened during the first year of Bush's presidency, if you will kindly note. I hope this helps.
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